Evidence of meeting #100 for Environment and Sustainable Development in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was change.
A recording is available from Parliament.
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Good afternoon, everyone.
Welcome, Mr. Minister.
Ms. Pauzé, I'd like to point out that no one is participating in the meeting virtually, so it wasn't necessary to carry out the sound tests. The room is packed. I'd like to thank the representatives of the Department of the Environment for being here.
I think everyone knows the drill.
Mr. Minister, you have 10 minutes for your opening remarks. Then, we'll move on to questions from committee members.
The floor is yours, Mr. Minister.
3:40 p.m.
Laurier—Sainte-Marie Québec
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault LiberalMinister of Environment and Climate Change
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
As you mentioned, I am accompanied by several people from the Department of the Environment, Parks Canada and the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.
I am very pleased to join committee members today to discuss the 2023–24 supplementary estimates (C) for my portfolio, which includes Environment and Climate Change Canada, Parks Canada and the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada.
I will provide you with an overview, after which my officials and I will be happy to answer your questions.
Before I begin, I would like to acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory of the Algonquin Anishinabeg Nation, who have long been stewards of the environment we share today.
Canadians have a lot on their plates. They are concerned about the cost of living, and rightly so. But climate change makes these issues worse. The cost of inaction is stark. If we ignore climate change, by 2025 we could see a $25 billion annual slowdown in our economic growth, according to Canadian Climate Institute. That's why our climate plan is not just a plan for the environment; it's a plan for economic stability.
We can't talk about how to fight climate change without talking about nature. Nature‑based solutions are a cornerstone of our climate action plan. Among other things, I'm thinking of the 2 billion trees program, our nature smart climate solutions program, and the commitment to protect at least 30% of land and water by 2030, in partnership with indigenous peoples, provinces and territories.
Which brings me to the importance to work closely with indigenous peoples. They have long been leaders in environmental stewardship, sustainable development and the management of natural resources. We have a lot to learn from them.
We have committed to supporting indigenous leadership in conservation through programs like the indigenous‑led natural climate solutions program, to help protect ecosystems, species and cultures for future generations.
The expenditures I will now present are in line with this urgent need for climate action and biodiversity protection.
Let me mention a few significant increases in the supplementary estimates (C) for six main initiatives.
First, an increase of $18.5 million is planned for the implementation of the Canada Water Agency and the freshwater action plan. Fresh water sustains life on earth. It supplies drinking water, grows food and supports ecosystems. It's a resource we often take for granted here in Canada, but it is crucial to protect.
Farmers in B.C. and beyond and industry analysts say that dramatic swings in weather are hampering grain and other crop yields at a time when farmers are leaving the sector, and the only way forward is to adapt with technology.
The renewed and strengthened freshwater action plan will support regionally specific actions to restore and protect the Great Lakes, the St. Lawrence River, Lake Winnipeg and other waterbodies from coast to coast to coast.
Next, an increase of $5 million is planned to support the Africa adaptation initiative for the food security accelerator. Let's not forget that climate change and biodiversity loss do not respect borders. This contribution will build on Canada's efforts to tackle food insecurity by investing in a mechanism dedicated to growing innovative small and medium agricultural enterprises in Africa.
Furthermore, an increase of $3.3 million is planned for the negotiation and implementation of indigenous rights‑based agreements. Across Canada, first nations, Inuit and Métis communities are disproportionately affected by climate change. These communities know how to recognize signs of imbalance in the environment. This investment will allow the Government of Canada to implement the Musqueam Recognition Agreement with Musqueam Indian Band, and the Burrard Inlet Environmental Science and Stewardship Agreement with Tsleil‑Waututh Nation.
In addition, an increase of $3 million is planned to promote the health of Canada's priority at‑risk whale population. This investment will help renew previous activities focused on protecting at‑risk whales using evidence‑based decision‑making grounded by science and technology, and help renew whale programming, including the coordination, implementation and enforcement of management interventions.
Lastly, an increase of more than $37 million is planned for wildfire response requirements. This increase has assisted Parks Canada to partially offset the extraordinary expenditures of the 2023 wildfire season that were required to respond to the unprecedented number and intensity of fires in the places across Canada that are administered by Parks Canada.
However, I must point out that Parks Canada's efforts have been felt well beyond the boundaries of the sites it administers.
For eight years, we've turned over every rock, looking for ways to cut Canada's carbon pollution and to clean our air and water while growing our economy, providing good jobs, and building out affordable and reliable clean energy. We will continue doing so for our children and their children.
Thank you for your time.
3:40 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Francis Scarpaleggia
Thank you, Minister.
We'll now move on to questions. I would like to acknowledge the presence of Ms. Falk, who is replacing Mr. Leslie.
Mr. Deltell, you have the floor for six minutes.
3:40 p.m.
Conservative
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
Ladies and gentlemen of the public service, it's always nice to see you, as well as you, Minister. It's always a pleasure to talk to you.
Mr. Minister, you started off by talking about the cost of living. Those were almost your first words. Cost of living, of course, means government spending, and that spending needs to be controlled.
Following a request for information from my colleague Mr. Mazier, we received a report on the expenditures made by Canada during its participation at the conference in Dubai on January 29. The figure doesn't include everything, since there was other information to come, but we're talking about a total expenditure of $1,353,307.09. As far as you're concerned, Mr. Minister, your air transportation cost taxpayers $13,239.83.
When you were on the plane going there, did you think about the cost of living for citizens?
March 19th, 2024 / 3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
As you know very well, Mr. Deltell, the fight against climate change requires an international effort. There is no answer or solution to climate change if we do not work together, all of us, at the international level. Roughly speaking, the G20 countries account for about 80% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the world. So it requires a concerted effort.
There was record provincial participation in the Dubai conference. I'm thinking of Alberta in particular. It was the largest Alberta delegation in the history of our participation in these conferences. That was also the case for Saskatchewan. There was also very significant participation from a number of other provinces, including our own, Quebec. That explains the cost of Canada's participation in this conference.
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Minister, my question was specifically about your plane trip, which cost Canadian taxpayers $13,239.83.
Did you think about the cost of living for Canadians when you were on that plane, yes or no?
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
As you know very well, government ministers are subject to very specific spending criteria, those of Treasury Board, and I follow them to the letter. They're essentially the same criteria as when the Conservative government was in power, and the same guidelines.
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
I don't think I ever saw an invoice for $13,239.83 to attend a conference in Dubai at that time.
I would now like to turn to another topic, that of public spending.
What will your strategy be to offset all the greenhouse gas emissions that you, as minister, and your team generated to attend this conference on the other side of the world, in Dubai, in the middle of the desert? That's greenwashing, in my opinion.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
I profoundly disagree with your characterization of Canada's international effort in the fight against climate change.
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
If I may, Mr. Deltell, it was because of those efforts that Canada was able to play a leading role at COP26, COP27 and COP28, where I was one of eight facilitators. Out of 194 countries, the COP28 president chose Canada to be one of eight countries that will facilitate reducing greenhouse gas emissions by billions of tonnes.
Before 2015, we were heading towards a world where temperatures were going to rise by 4 degrees Celsius, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the IPCC. Now, thanks to the Paris Agreement and its implementation, we're moving towards a world where temperature increases would be in the order of 2.3 degrees Celsius. For every tenth of a degree Celsius less, we are talking about hundreds of billions of tonnes of greenhouse gases that will never be—
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
I'll talk about your record later, but for now, I'm asking you to tell us what your approach is to make up, in an environmentally friendly way, for the two weeks you spent in the middle of the desert in big air-conditioned hotels. I call it greenwashing, clearing your conscience.
How much will you, as minister, pay to offset your CO 2 emissions during this trip?
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
I think reducing the anticipated temperature increase from 4 degrees to 2.3 degrees Celsius is a proud service to the Canadian people and to the global population as a whole.
Obviously, I didn't do it on my own; it's a joint effort, but we must do it together.
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
Let's talk about this joint effort.
You were at COP28 in Dubai, where Canada's real record was presented. After almost nine years of Liberal government, Canada is now ranked 62nd out of 67 countries in terms of effectiveness in fighting climate change.
Are you proud of that record? Are you proud to be the minister representing the country ranked 62nd?
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
I'm very proud to be Canada's Minister of Environment and Climate Change, as you know very well, Mr. Deltell. I make a sustained effort every day to carry out this role.
You know very well that when we came to power in 2015, the forecast showed that Canada was going to miss its 2030 targets by at least 12%. Currently, according to the latest inventory of greenhouse gas emissions, we are 7% below 2015 levels. Missing that target is a legacy of your government and—
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
3:45 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
—and the difference between the two is the equivalent of taking over 16 million vehicles off the road. So imagine Canada with 16 million more vehicles on its roads and their impact on air and climate pollution.
3:45 p.m.
Conservative
Gérard Deltell Conservative Louis-Saint-Laurent, QC
When you were an activist, Canada was ranked 58th. Since you've been minister, it's been ranked 62nd. Are you proud of that?
3:50 p.m.
Liberal
Steven Guilbeault Liberal Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC
I know that you quite like referring to that report, and I imagine that you have read it in detail.